


Risk Management

by veleda_k



Category: White Collar
Genre: F/M, Hurt/Comfort, Pre-Series
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-07-01
Updated: 2013-07-01
Packaged: 2017-12-16 18:51:21
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,167
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/865404
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/veleda_k/pseuds/veleda_k
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>When a job doesn't go quite as planned, Kate has to take stock of her new life.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Risk Management

**Author's Note:**

  * For [FloraStuart](https://archiveofourown.org/users/FloraStuart/gifts).



> Written for FloraStuart. Her prompt was "White Collar, Kate/Neal, h/c with Neal (and Mozzie?) taking care of Kate."

It wasn't supposed to go like it did. Neal had done reconnaissance. Mozzie had bugged the phone line and knew when the family would be leaving the house. None of them had counted on the family getting a second doberman just a few days ago. They got what they were after--sheets of rare stamps--but Kate fell from the fence and landed on her arm. Pumping with adrenaline and fear, she hardly noticed it except as a dull ache, but once the three of them got to the safe house the pain bloomed. 

The safe house was cramped. Lying on a rickety cot, Kate wished she was in the apartment she shared with Neal, but Mozzie had a rule about never returning straight home after a job. The safe house did have a major advantage. Mozzie was, of course, always prepared, and had both a splint and pain killers on hand. It would be nice if those pain killers could kick in a little quicker though. 

“Can I get you anything?” Neal asked.

“No,” Kate told him shortly. She didn't look at him. She hated him at that moment, really hated him. This had never been her life before. She had never been chased by vicious dogs or fallen from fences. This was Neal's world, not hers, and he had brought all the pain that came with it.

The worst part was that deep down she knew that was stupid. Her fall wasn't Neal's fault. And Neal had never dragged her into anything. She had chosen this life. She had chosen to run away with Neal. Even after that, Neal had never pressured her to go on jobs. That had been her decision. Neal would have been happy to keep her well away from the danger and risk, but she couldn't stand feeling useless. This was no one's fault. Bur Kate's arm hurt, and when she closed her eyes, she saw the dog coming at her. She remembered falling, and the sound her arm had made when it hit the ground. It was easier to be angry than remember how frightened she had been.

Neal noticed her coldness and moved away to give her space, even if he could only move so far in the little room. “She should go to a hospital,” he whispered to Mozzie. 

“What? Absolutely not.” Mozzie looked at Neal like Neal had suggested they rob the CIA. “No hospitals, Neal, not unless it's life or death. That's the rule. No hospitals.”

“We don't know how bad the break is, and she's going to need a cast. Can you do any of that, because I can't. She needs a doctor.”

Mozzie scowled. “We wouldn't be having this conversation if _I_ had fallen. Or if you had, for that matter. But when your girlfriend screws up--”

Neal's eyes flashed. “Kate didn't screw up, we did. We were supposed to know what we were going into, and we missed the second dog. And thanks to our mistake, Kate needs a doctor. Now, you can help make that happen, or so help me, I will drive her to the emergency room myself.”

Mozzie met Neal's eyes for a moment, then looked away. “I know a guy. I wouldn't trust him with open heart surgery, but he can check a broken arm and make a cast as well as any doctor. He doesn't come cheap though.”

“Then it's a good thing we just pulled off a job.”

Kate silently took in the exchange. She had never seen Neal angry before, and she had never imagined he would talk to Mozzie like that. Kate had realized early on that the group didn't have anything like a leader, but Mozzie did have more experience. Kate had seen the two of them disagree, but not like this.

Kate knew that Mozzie acceptance of her was grudging. She knew that he resented her. But both of them had always held back. They hadn't known which way Neal would go, if he were pushed. This hadn't answered that question completely, but now they both knew that Neal wouldn't automatically side with Mozzie. Good to know, though not worth a broken arm. 

Neal came over to her. “I assume you heard all that.”

“I couldn't have avoided it.”

“I'm sorry. I never want to see you hurt.”

“I know.” Her anger had faded. It helped that the pain killers were kicking in. “But it happens. I knew I wasn't signing on for a tropical getaway.”

“We'll have one of those,” Neal promised. “Just name your island.”

“Right now I'd settle for our apartment.”

“Soon.” He brushed her hair out her face. Kate used her good hand to bring Neal closer. He leaned down and kissed her. Mozzie scoffed. It was awkward, but Kate managed to keep her good arm around Neal while flipping Mozzie the bird. Luckily, from his current vantage point, Neal couldn't see. 

“I'm sorry,” Neal murmured again.

“You'll be making it up to me,” Kate teased. “I can hardly be expected to cook or clean with my arm in a sling. I'll have to lie around while you do all the work.”

Neal chuckled. “Fair enough. Not that you cook.”

“I make pancakes,” Kate corrected with pretend seriousness.

“And excellent pancakes they are.” There wasn't quite enough room on the cot for two, so Neal sat down and twisted his body until he was half laying beside her. It couldn't have been comfortable. 

Kate yawned. Now that her arm no longer hurt and the adrenaline had mostly left her system, she realized how tired she was. 

Neal slipped her an extra pillow. “To rest your arm on,” he explained.

Kate looked around. Mozzie was sitting on the second cot, looking territorial. “You're going to sleep on the floor?” she asked Neal.

“Sure,” he answered with an easy shrug. Kate wondered if his nonchalance came from not wanting to worry her, or if he was used to sleeping on hard floors. She knew very little about him, really. He tended to shut down if she asked him about his past. It was all right. She could wait. 

“At least take a pillow.” She reached for the one behind her head.

Neal shook his head. “You need those.” Kate saw a blur of white. It was only when Neal caught it that she saw it was Mozzie's pillow. Neal smiled. “Thanks, Moz.” Mozzie waved the words away. Kate gave Mozzie a barely perceptible nod. She figured it was all the thanks he would accept from her. After a few moments, Mozzie nodded back. 

Kate thought it would take her forever to get to sleep, but her eyelids quickly grew heavy. Tomorrow they would be back home, and she and Neal could sleep in the same soft bed. Tomorrow Hale would look at the sheets of stamps they had purloined. 

Neal was looking at her softly when she closed her eyes. When she thought about tomorrow, today didn't seem quite so bad.


End file.
